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Dems Need to Work on Environmental Education

A newly-released Harris Poll, conducted 3/8-14 indicates that 47 percent of Americans disapprove of President Bush's environmental policies, while 36 percent approve. The poll also found that 20 percent of self-identified Republicans disapproved of the Administration's environmental policies, with 70 percent of Democrats and 50 percent of Independents expressing disapproval.

Given the utter failure of the Bush Administration to provide leadership to address a broad range of environmental concerns, it is somewhat surprising that a majority of Americans did not express their disapproval of Bush's policies in the poll, as did in the recent Gallup Poll on the ANWR pipeline. (see March 18 post below). The Gallup Poll also found that 61 percent of Americans believe there should be more emphasis on conservation to solve the nation's energy problems, with 28 percent prefering an emphasis on energy production. The question in the Harris Poll was more general, but it does provide some indication of the public's overall view of the Administration's environmental stewardship. Clearly the Democratic Party, progressive leaders and groups must do a better job of educating the American people about Bush's dismal record on environmental issues -- and the Democrats' ability to deliver credible alternatives.